FTC clears Google on anti-trust claims

By Rebecca Greenfield

January 4, 2013

Google is getting off pretty easy: after a two-year investigation into Google's possibly anti-competitive antics, the Federal Trade Commission has ruled that Google hasn't done anything wrong, saying "evidence does not support a claim" that Google unfairly favors its own products in its search results. Even with that, the search giant has, however, agreed to change some of its practices. So, here's how it will try to be a less evil going forward.

Search Results

The Complaint: Google was accused of taking content like restaurant reviews from elsewhere and leading readers to believe it came from Google. When these content creators complained, they said Google threatened to remove them from search altogether—"clearly problematic," to use the word's of FTC Chairman Jon Leibowitz.

The Fix: The search engine will now let these content creators opt-out of showing up in Google's search results.

Patents

The Complaint: Too many mobile-related lawsuits as a result of misused patents.

The fix: Google has to offer a license to any company that hopes to use its "essential" Motorola patents. On its own blog, Google explains that it will try to resolve patent disputes through "a neutral third party before seeking injunctions. This ruling is the only one enforceable by law.